Energy efficiency kerfuffle

Two environmental groups are asking regulators to "investigate the potentially anti-competitive
relationship between FirstEnergy's distribution utilities ... and its affiliated companies that
generate electricity and control transmission lines."

The Sierra Club and Ohio Environmental Council made this request in the middle of a debate over
whether the Ohio General Assembly will weaken its requirements for renewable energy and energy
efficiency. FirstEnergy has been the most outspoken critic of the rules, which it says will lead to
a surge in electricity prices.

The enviro groups say that company's motives are much more selfish: "FirstEnergy and its allies
attack energy efficiency for one reason and one reason only: They want to sell you more energy at
higher prices. Energy efficiency saves consumers money; if FirstEnergy's efforts to roll back
energy efficiency succeed, consumers will pay more," said Trent Dougherty, director of the Ohio
Environmental Council law center, in a news release. The quote at the beginning of this post is
also from that release.

Aside from the debate about energy efficiency, consumer advocates have long had concerns about
the way that utility companies do business with affiliated businesses. I suspect little will come
of this latest request for an investigation. The environmentalists made it as part of a larger case
before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio that deals with the structure of the state's
electricity market. The full filing is
here (PDF).

The legislature will continue hearings about energy efficiency and renewable energy on Tuesday
with a panel discussion that will include FirstEnergy.